Cynthia Irene Waxman, an 11-year-old girl from Moraga, California, was tragically murdered on April 22, 1978. She was last seen playing with a stray kitten near Campolindo High School before disappearing. Her body was discovered hours later in nearby woods, showing signs of sexual assault and strangulation.
For decades, the case remained unsolved. In 2000, the Contra Costa Sheriff's crime lab revisited the cold case, and with additional federal funding, DNA evidence was tested.
In 2005, investigators identified the perpetrator as Charles "Junior" Jackson, an Oakland-based serial killer, through DNA evidence. Jackson had already been serving a life sentence for a 1982 rape and murder when he died of a heart attack in Folsom State Prison in 2002.
Cynthia's father, Lorin Waxman, expressed gratitude to law enforcement for their persistence in solving the case, stating that it provided closure for the family and the Moraga community, which had been deeply affected by the crime.
